Flutter
by theweepingblade
Summary: Wanderlust forces a heartbroken Skipper and grieving Marlene to find the friends they have lost along the way, as well as each other. Please Read and Review if you wish for a continued story. Rating subject to changes. Skipper/Marlene
1. Chapter 1

Spirit never died. It refused to be crushed, unwaveringly lit and bright, waiting for Skipper to notice.

The escape would have been perfect, the penguin reasoned, had Marlene not apprehended him with another plausible excuse to visit the HQ (do you have a cup of water I can borrow?). She found Skipper tying up his few belongings. Within minutes, she returned with a similar knapsack.

"Leaving aren't you?"

"I have no reason to be here." The walls of the HQ were blank. The interior was empty, save for one bunk.

"Then, neither do I."

Skipper paused. He felt something inside him stir, a groggy _thing_ awakening from slumber.

"Very well Otter."

"Where to?"

"Philadelphia."

Marlene didn't need to ask to know who was there.

The two emerged from the tunnel on the sidewalks of Manhattan. Skipper instinctively turned into an alley, and Marlene wordlessly followed, though she grimaced from the pain her bones were causing her.

Her body never quite recovered from birthing, and she was left to suffer eternally from weak joints and stomach pains that would jolt her from sleep and cry against Skipper's shoulder, cry for the pain, for the pups she would never see again.

They escaped into the sewers, and lead Marlene to a small raft, tied to a rotted post, bouncing with the waves of sewage.

Within an hour, they emerged from the sewer pipe under the Philadelphia zoo.


	2. A Shade of Color

**A/N: Thank you for all that reviewed! Such a rush came in the first 24 hours I had to update. More to come, and more to be revealed.  
**

Philadelphia Zoo

Instinct led him through the deserted zoo, deftly to the penguin exhibit, crouching under cover and patiently waiting for the staggering Marlene. They dove into the water of the exhibit. The area was small, a tiny fake iceberg floating atop a pool of lukewarm water. There was a small nest area on the platform, and Skipper propelled Marlene up before leaping out of the water.

They were instantly set upon by a rampaging penguin, screeching and roaring. A black cloth bag covered its head. Marlene instinctively leaped back into water, only to realize, in dismay that Skipper hadn't followed.

The first two blows caught Skipper off balance; he staggered back, unprepared for such an encounter. The other penguin's beak dug savagely into his shoulder, and he suddenly felt warm all of the sudden. He staggered, taking a step. His flipper failed to connect with imitation ice, and he slipped under the water.

* * *

Strange, the penguin thought, as he worked to suture up an unconscious Skipper. He was unable to extract any information from the otter, so he remained content to leave her blacked out in the corner, under the watch eye of Ochre. Something vague stirred inside of him, perhaps déjà-vu? Highly unlikely, he reasoned. Must be some sort of residual memory. Perhaps a flake of a dream.

Ochre brought up a sopping wet, crudely tied bag, retrieved from the depths of the pool. His curiosity gave way, and he pried the bag open. He extracted a makeshift short bow, and a quiver of plunger-tipped arrows. Leaving it aside, the penguin decided it would do him well if he trained Ochre in fletching, perhaps even he could pick up the art and point Ochre into other more violent, straightforward pursuits.

Next was small pocket photo. However, water had sufficiently ruined it, and he tossed it to the side.

He reached and pulled out a watertight bag. His flippers trembling, he unzipped the bag. Inside was a plain, spiral-ring notebook, and a simple pencil. He quickly turned to the first page, his eyes glistening. He thought for a second that he might faint, though illogical it was. A dizzying array of complex equations and diagrams lay scattered on the page, a blueprint for an enlargement antidote.

"Ochre, over here", rasped Kowalski. A burst of memories rushed forth.

The penguin cocked his head, and approached. Kowalski deftly ripped off the hood, tossing away the shredded fabric. Rico blinked at the light.

"Ungh?" he mumbled.

"Rico!" at his name, Rico jolted, as if physically struck. "Ko-wal-ski?" he grunted.

Kowalski quickly reached into the bag, and pulled out the final object. Rico's beloved doll. Kowalski left the two to embrace, and slowly worked on reviving Skipper and that strange otter.


	3. Black and White Belong Too

"MOMMY!"

Skipper awoke, sweating, tearing. It was dark, deathly still. His shoulder throbbed with his pulse, fresh blood pushing atop his skin. He briefly panicked, his eyes attempting to make shapes out of outlines. Very slowly, he got to his feet, making his way to the faint moonlight.

"Hello? Marlene?" he rasped. Skipper instantly berated himself. His position was in danger, situation perilous. Then, curiously, he felt his knees melt. His joints never failed him, but he found himself quickly leaning in for kiss with the ground.

Kowalski located Skipper in the morning, concussed, bleeding. Rico performed emergency medicine, propping up the patient on a bed of woven ferns. His head was bandaged, bleeding staunched. Kowalski set himself on examining the otter. Her fur was a dull brown, tinged with grey. A memory crawled into him, forcing its way into his consciousness.

"Marlene?"

The otter stirred at the noise, mumbling. Kowalski dumped a bucket of water on her face. His pulse quickened. "Marlene!"

And then he noticed. As the otter's eyes cracked open, astray from the regular emerald green, they were a pale, pale blue.

"Skipper?" she whispered breathily.

"It's, uh, Kowalski. Marlene." he found himself at a loss. How did you greet a female otter friend from the past? His logical brain gave him no answer.

The otter seethed, propping herself up. "I swear …"

"Ah, no! No!" the penguin quickly interjected. "He's under the care of Rico."

The otter frowned. "I can't be sure." Her mind was still reeling from the last night, her psyche shaken by the masked penguin's ruthless assault.

And she lunged at Kowalski. The penguin was knocked off his feet, his breath escaping him. He very briefly wondered what had happened, before she struck him with a sharp backhand to the temple. And then he very briefly saw stars before seeing nothing at all.

Marlene found her way to Rico easily enough, and it took more than a few tense minutes for Skipper to assure her there was no imminent threat.

"Rico, scrape Kowalski up. We're leaving."

Very slowly, the penguin shook his head.

Skipper flashed Rico a quizzical look.

Rico held out his flipper, slowly leading Skipper and Marlene to the back of the cave den. Huddled, sleeping on a nest in a corner was a penguin, breathing slowly. Clutched next to her was a single pearl-shaped egg, gleaming dully in the darkness.

Rico croaked out Kowalski's name, motioning to the penguin's mate and egg. With a twinge of emotion scraping through his heart, Skipper knew it was time to go.

The penguin slowly touched Marlene's hand, and they both set off. They recollected Skipper's bag and belongings, leaving doll and clipboard to rightful owners.

Meanwhile, Kowalski began to gently stir from his slumber.

It was nearly midnight again when they reached Boston, having to exchange sewer pipes numerous times. Once again, they appeared from the zoo grate, sauntering over to the penguin exhibit. The habitat was grand and gaudy, with plentiful tacky neon and ribbon.

It would be daybreak again before Skipper would find who he came to see.


End file.
